I loved her first
by The Maiden Amorisa
Summary: Charlie's thoughts as he watches Bella and Edward dance together at their wedding


Title: I Loved Her First

Title: I Loved Her First

Rating: G

Pairings: Edward/Bella

Spoilers: Post Eclipse, The Wedding

Warnings: None

Summary: Charlie's point of view as Bella dances her first dance with Edward at their wedding

"Ladies and gentleman, may I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen!"

The crowd clapped, some whistled as the couple walked hand in hand down the aisle. Bella was beaming and Edward smiled at her with love and adoration in his eyes when he looked at my daughter.

The reception in the Cullen's massive backyard was beautiful. I was grateful for the fact that Renee and I had raised our daughter not to be picky. She didn't want limos or reception halls. Alice had confided in me that Bella had really just wanted a simple wedding in Vegas, no fuss. I was grateful that she had talked Bella out of it. I was glad, to see her get married. Glad that she had kept her promise to give me a chance to tell her goodbye.

It was time for the first dance for the bride and groom to share together, and I smiled ruefully. Bella, like me, hated dancing, I was sure she was going to trip over herself in the beautiful gown Alice had got for her, but I saw her slip her feet on top of Edwards. Clever boy. Then again, he knew how clumsy my daughter could be.

_Look at the two of you dancing that way  
Lost in the moment and each others face  
So much in love your alone in this place  
Like there's nobody else in the world  
I was enough for her not long ago  
I was her number one  
She told me so  
And she still means the world to me  
Just so you know  
So be careful when you hold my girl  
Time changes everything  
Life must go on  
And I'm not gonna stand in your way_

When Bella and Edward came home and told me they were getting married. I thought my heart would break. Bella was too young to get married. However, she was eighteen, and it was her choice. I had relented and offered my blessing, but grimly, if not gleefully warned Edward that I would kill him if he _ever _hurt my daughter again. Bella may have forgiven him for his decisions last September, but it would be a long time before I forgot.

I couldn't deny the fact however that the boy did love her. The way he looked after Bella, leaned towards her in a protective manner was touching. Perhaps Bella was right and I was prejudice against him because of Jake and Billy. I would have to be careful in the future. He would be my son in law now, and as long as he loved and cherished Bella, then she had found everything I hoped for in a man.__

But I loved her first and I held her first  
And a place in my heart will always be hers  
From the first breath she breathed  
When she first smiled at me  
I knew the love of a father runs deep  
And I prayed that she'd find you someday  
But it still hard to give her away  
I loved her first

The day Bella was born was the happiest day of my life, despite the fact that our marriage didn't work out. I had loved Renee very much, and wept with complete joy the day she brought our daughter into the world.

I can still close my eyes and remember the nurses placing her in my arms. Her face was red and angry. Renee looked up at me tired but smiling as I timidly rocked the little girl in my arms. That was when my daughter looked up at me for the first time.

I looked at Bella. Bella looked at me. She had stopped fussing, her cries quieting down to gurgles and I brought her up to my face and kissed her forehead.

"Welcome to the world Isabella"__

How could that beautiful women with you  
Be the same freckle face kid that I knew  
The one that I read all those fairy tales to  
And tucked into bed all those nights  
And I knew the first time I saw you with her  
It was only a matter of time

The Divorce was hard. Not seeing Bella everyday was painful, but Renee and I had a marriage that didn't end badly. I could call and visit whenever I wanted, and she would spend two weeks every summer with me.

I remember when she went through a phase after staying at my house for two weeks. She was four years old, and before she went to sleep, I'd tuck her into bed, and read her a bedtime story. When went home to Renee, she called every night demanding I read her a story over the phone before she would go to sleep.

When Renee called me and told me that Bella wand to move in with me, I was overjoyed. I was happy that Renee had found someone she could be happy with, but more time with my daughter was the best thing I could ask for, never mind the fact that I had no idea how to raise or even take care of a teenage girl, but Bella seemed self sufficient. She was used to taking care of Renee, she certainly didn't need my help with anything.

I was a little bit worried when she started school, how would I approach the topic of boys and sex with her? She showed no preference to any of them, and I was grateful. Nobody in this town was good enough for my Bella.

Then along came Edward Cullen. And I knew, despite everything, despite what happened last September, I knew that this was the man that Bella would love and want to be with forever. I only wondered how much time I had before another person took my baby away from me.__

But I loved her first and I held her first  
And a place in my heart will always be hers  
From the first breath she breathed  
When she first smiled at me  
I knew the love of a father runs deep  
And I prayed that she'd find you someday  
But its still hard to give her away  
I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed  
When she first smiled at me  
I knew the love of a father runs deep  
Someday you might know what I'm going through  
When a miracle smiles up at you  
I loved her first

So here I stand, watching my daughter dance her first dance with her _husband_. Renee is standing next to me with her new husband Phil, batting at her eyes. I knew that Edward Cullen loved my daughter, but nobody loved Bella as much as me.


End file.
